The present invention relates to a closure device for a sports footwear. More particularly, the present invention relates to a closure device which facilitates insertion of the user's foot into a footwear and extraction of the same from the footwear.
As is known, ski boots and other sports footwear provided with a substantially rigid outer shell have a longitudinal opening allowing to widen the outer shell in order to allow the user to insert his/her foot into the footwear item and extract it therefrom and are equipped with a series of closure devices which are arranged transversely to the longitudinal opening and by means of which the footwear item can be closed so as to immobilize the user's foot within the footwear during the practice of sports.
In particular, closure devices are known comprising a supporting plate adapted to be rigidly attached to a first side of the longitudinal opening of the shell, a closure lever hinged to the supporting plate, and a tensioning member which at a first end is hinged to a central portion of the closure lever and at a second end is provided with hooking elements for engaging with an anchoring plate (for instance a toothed rack) rigidly attached to a second, opposite side of the opening of the shell.
The lever is hinged to the supporting plate so as to be rotatable between a closed position and an open position.
In the closed position, the hooking elements of the tensioning member are firmly fastened to the anchoring plate and the distance between the supporting plate and the anchoring plate—and therefore the distance between the two sides of the opening of the shell—is fixed and determined by the size and the position of the tensioning member.
In the open position, the hooking elements of the tensioning member are disengaged from the anchoring plate and the distance between the two sides of the opening of the shell can be varied, in particular the distance can be increased so as to widen the opening of the shell and facilitate insertion of the user's foot into the footwear or extraction therefrom.
However, in known footwear, these operations of inserting and extracting the foot may be not so comfortable.
Indeed, although the hooking elements of the tensioning members of the closure devices are disengaged from the corresponding anchoring plates, the closure devices may still be of hindrance in performing the aforesaid operations.
Indeed, after the hooking elements have been disengaged, the closure devices are still positioned through and above the opening of the shell, so that they constitute an obstacle to the widening of the opening.
In addition, there exists the risk that the hooking elements get inadvertently caught in the anchoring plate, thus blocking widening of the opening and forcing the user to free them again. Since the user may have to carry out such operation in difficult conditions (for example with hands numb from the cold or when wearing thick gloves), this operation may be difficult.
In prior art there are known sports footwear in which the closure device can be locked in different positions, and particularly in a first position in which the user's leg is immobilized within the footwear, and in a second position in which the user's leg has some freedom of movement within the footwear. For example, in case of applications to the specific field of boots for ski mountaineering, such solutions can be used for locking the closure devices in an optimal position for the downhill phase and in another optimal position for the uphill phase. Examples of such solutions are illustrated in documents EP 2 116 145 and EP 2 198 730.
However, in the aforementioned solutions, the closure devices are again arranged through and above the opening of the shell and hinder widening thereof.
In particular, in the aforementioned solutions, both in the first and in the second position the tensioning member of the closure device is engaged with an anchoring plate provided on the opposite side of the longitudinal opening of the shell of the sports footwear.
The main object of the present invention is to overcome the limitations of prior art by providing a closure device for sports footwear which can shift from a closed position to an open position and—in the open position—makes it particularly comfortable for the user to insert and extract his/her foot into and from the footwear, respectively.
This and other objects are achieved with the closure device as claimed in the appended claims.